Suction nozzle assembly for a vacuum cleaner

ABSTRACT

A suction nozzle assembly for a vacuum cleaner includes a nozzle body with a contaminants suction opening, and a rotation drum rotatably disposed at the contaminants suction opening of the nozzle body with a plurality of protrusions formed on an outer circumferential surface of the rotation drum. When the nozzle body moves on a surface to be cleaned, the rotation drum is rotated by friction force of the plurality of protrusions against the surface to be cleaned.

CROSS-REFERENCE TO RELATED APPLICATIONS

This application claims the benefit under 35 U.S.C. §119(e) from U.S.Provisional Application No. 60/897149 filed Jan. 24, 2007 in the UnitedStates Patent & Trademark Office, and the benefit under 35 U.S.C.§119(a) from Korean Patent Application No. 2007-24066 filed Mar. 12,2007 in the Korean Intellectual Property Office, the disclosures of bothof which are incorporated herein by reference in their entirety.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

The present disclosure relates to a vacuum cleaner. More particularly,the present disclosure relates to a suction nozzle assembly for a vacuumcleaner.

2. Description of the Related Art

Generally, vacuum cleaners have a suction nozzle assembly that can drawin contaminants with air from a surface to be cleaned.

The suction nozzle assembly is provided with a contaminants suctionopening that faces the surface to be cleaned and draws in contaminantsfrom the surface to be cleaned. When a vacuum generator in a cleanerbody operates to generate suction force, the contaminants on the surfaceto be cleaned are drawn-in through the contaminants suction opening. Theterm “contaminants” will be used herein to refer collectively to dust,dirt, particulates, debris, and other similar matter that can beentrained with the air drawn in by the vacuum cleaner.

However, when cleaning the surface to be cleaned such as a carpet usingonly the suction force, thin contaminants such as hair of human, fur ofpets, etc. cannot effectively be removed. To effectively remove hair ofhuman, fur of pets, etc., it is preferable that the thin contaminantssuch as hair of human, fur of pets, etc. on the surface to be cleanedare collected in a lump, and then guided toward the contaminants suctionopening.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION

The present disclosure has been developed in order to overcome the abovedrawbacks and other problems associated with the conventionalarrangement. An aspect of the present disclosure is to provide a suctionnozzle assembly for a vacuum cleaner that can effectively draw in thincontaminants such as hair of human, fur of pets, etc. from a surface tobe cleaned.

The above aspect and/or other feature of the present disclosure cansubstantially be achieved by providing a suction nozzle assembly for avacuum cleaner, which includes a nozzle body with a contaminants suctionopening; and a rotation drum rotatably disposed at the contaminantssuction opening of the nozzle body with a plurality of protrusionsformed on an outer circumferential surface of the rotation drum, whereinwhen the nozzle body moves on a surface to be cleaned, the rotation drumis rotated by friction force of the plurality of protrusions against thesurface to be cleaned.

Also, the suction nozzle assembly may include: a rotation restrictingmember to restrict the rotation drum to rotate.

The rotation restricting member may allow the rotation drum to rotateonly in one direction.

The rotation restricting member may include a ratchet wheel disposedintegrally with the rotation drum; and a ratchet pawl disposed at thenozzle body to allow the ratchet wheel to rotate only in one direction.

The rotation restricting member may allow the rotation drum to rotatewhen pushing the nozzle body forward.

Furthermore, the rotation restricting member may allow the rotation drumto rotate in clockwise and counterclockwise directions within apredetermined angle.

The rotation drum may include a drum body; and a removing memberdisposed at the drum body with the plurality of protrusions.

The plurality of protrusions may be formed in a substantially stickshape, a substantially block shape, or a substantially loop shape.

The plurality of protrusions may be formed in a substantially blockshape, and some of the plurality of protrusions may be formed in asubstantially slit block shape.

The suction nozzle assembly may include a brush rotatably disposed atone side of the rotation drum in the nozzle body.

According to another aspect of the present disclosure, a suction nozzleassembly for a vacuum cleaner may include: a nozzle body with acontaminants suction opening; and a pair of rotation drums rotatablydisposed at the contaminants suction opening of the nozzle body with aplurality of protrusions formed on an outer circumferential surface ofeach of the rotation drums, wherein when the nozzle body moves on asurface to be cleaned, the pair of rotation drums is rotated by frictionforce of the plurality of protrusions against the surface to be cleaned.

The suction nozzle assembly may include a rotation restricting member torestrict each of the pair of rotation drums to rotate.

The rotation restricting member may be configured so that when thenozzle body moves in one direction a first rotation drum of the pair ofrotation drums rotates and a second rotation drum does not rotate, andwhen the nozzle body moves in a reverse direction the first rotationdrum does not rotate and the second rotation drum rotates.

The rotation restricting member may include a ratchet wheel disposedintegrally with each of the pair of rotation drums; and a ratchet pawldisposed at the nozzle body to restrict rotation of the ratchet wheel.

Other objects, advantages and salient features of the disclosure willbecome apparent from the following detailed description, which, taken inconjunction with the annexed drawings, discloses preferred embodimentsof the disclosure.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

These and/or other aspects and advantages of the disclosure will becomeapparent and more readily appreciated from the following description ofthe embodiments, taken in conjunction with the accompanying drawings ofwhich:

FIG. 1 is a partial perspective view illustrating a upright vacuumcleaner with a suction nozzle assembly according to an exemplaryembodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 2 is a bottom view illustrating the upright vacuum cleaner of FIG.1;

FIG. 3 is a sectional view illustrating a brush unit of the suctionnozzle assembly of FIG. 2 taken along a line III-III in FIG. 2;

FIGS. 4A and 4B are sectional views illustrating another rotationrestricting member used in a rotation drum of FIG. 3, FIG. 4Aillustrates the rotation drum to rotate, and FIG. 4B illustrates therotation drum not to rotate;

FIG. 5 is a sectional view illustrating another rotation restrictingmember used in a rotation drum of FIG. 3;

FIGS. 6A and 6B are perspective views illustrating a drum body of arotation drum of FIG. 3;

FIG. 7 is a perspective view illustrating a removing member of arotation drum of FIG. 3;

FIG. 8 is an enlarged perspective view illustrating the portion of theremoving member of FIG. 7 illustrated in circle X;

FIGS. 9A to 9F are partial perspective views illustrating variousprotrusions of a removing member of a rotation drum of FIG. 3;

FIG. 10 is a perspective view illustrating another removing member of arotation drum of FIG. 3;

FIG. 11 is a bottom view illustrating a suction nozzle assemblyaccording to another embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIG. 12 is a bottom view illustrating a suction nozzle assemblyaccording to another embodiment of the present disclosure;

FIGS. 13A and 13B are views schematically illustrating operation of arotation drum of FIG. 12; and

FIG. 14 is a conceptual view schematically illustrating the suctionnozzle assembly of FIG. 12 having another rotation restricting member.

Throughout the drawings, like reference numerals will be understood torefer to like parts, components and structures.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF THE EXEMPLARY EMBODIMENTS

Hereinafter, certain exemplary embodiments of the present disclosurewill be described in detail with reference to the accompanying drawings.

The matters defined in the description, such as a detailed constructionand elements thereof, are provided to assist in a comprehensiveunderstanding of the disclosure. Thus, it is apparent that the presentdisclosure may be carried out without those defined matters. Also,well-known functions or constructions are omitted to provide a clear andconcise description of exemplary embodiments of the present disclosure.

FIG. 1 is a perspective view illustrating a suction nozzle assembly 1according to an embodiment of the present disclosure disposed in anupright vacuum cleaner, and FIG. 2 is a bottom view of the suctionnozzle assembly 1 of FIG. 1.

Referring to FIGS. 1 and 2, the suction nozzle assembly 1 for a vacuumcleaner according to the embodiment of the present disclosure includes anozzle body 2, and a brush unit 10.

The nozzle body 2 is provided with a contaminants suction pathway (notillustrated). The brush unit 10 is disposed in a front end of the nozzlebody 2. Also, the nozzle body 2 is provided with a pair of wheels 4 toallow the suction nozzle assembly 1 to move on a surface to be cleaned.The nozzle body 2 is connected with a cleaner body 5 of the vacuumcleaner.

This embodiment is referred to the suction nozzle assembly 1 used in theupright vacuum cleaner. Therefore, when a vacuum generator (notillustrated) disposed in the cleaner body 5 of the upright vacuumcleaner generates suction force, contaminants are drawn in from thesurface to be cleaned via a contaminants suction opening 14 of the brushunit 10.

The brush unit 10 is disposed in the front end of the nozzle body 2. Thecontaminants suction opening 14 is formed on a bottom surface of thebrush unit 10, and in fluid communication with the contaminants suctionpathway of the nozzle body 2. At this time, the brush unit 10 may beconfigured to pivot with respect to the nozzle body 2 by a predeterminedangle.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, the brush unit 10 includes a brush 13, arotation drum 20, and a housing 11.

The brush 13 is rotatably disposed at the contaminants suction opening14 of the housing 11, and has a plurality of bristles that is formed ona surface of the brush 13 to contact the surface to be cleaned.Therefore, when the brush 13 rotates, contaminants can be removed fromthe surface to be cleaned.

The rotation drum 20 is rotatably disposed in front of the brush 13 atthe housing 11 and, thus in front of the suction opening 14. Therotation drum 20 collects thin contaminants such as hair of human, furof animals, etc. on the surface to be cleaned in a lump, and then,guides the collected thin contaminants in a lump toward the brush 13.The rotation drum 20 includes a rotation restricting member 29, a drumbody 50 (refer to FIG. 6A), and a removing member 60 (refer to FIG. 7).

The rotation restricting member 29 may be configured to allow therotation drum 20 to rotate in a first direction but not to rotate in areverse direction of the first direction according to a moving directionof the suction nozzle assembly 1. Alternatively, the rotationrestricting member 29 may be configured to allow the rotation drum 20 torotate in both directions within a predetermined angle. The rotationrestricting member 29 may be disposed in at least one side of the drumbody 50.

In FIG. 3, a ratchet part 30 is illustrated as one example of therotation restricting member 29. In FIG. 3, the ratchet part 30 isconfigured to allow the rotation drum 20 to rotate only in onedirection. The ratchet part 30 of FIG. 3 includes a ratchet wheel 31,which is disposed coaxially with the rotation drum 20 to rotateintegrally with the rotation drum 20, and a ratchet pawl 33 that isdisposed at one side of the ratchet wheel 31 at either of the housing 11or the nozzle body 2. The ratchet pawl 33 is disposed not to rotatealthough the rotation drum 20 rotates.

The ratchet wheel 31 is provided with a plurality of inclined teeth 32on an outer circumferential surface thereof. When the ratchet wheel 31receives force in an inclined direction of each of the teeth 32, theteeth 32 of the ratchet wheel 31 are not hooked on the ratchet pawl 33so that the ratchet wheel 31 can rotate. When the ratchet wheel 31receives force in a reverse direction, a vertical side 32 a of any ofthe teeth 32 of the ratchet wheel 31 is hooked on the ratchet pawl 33 sothat the ratchet wheel 31 cannot rotate. In other words, the rotationdrum 20 can rotate in a direction of an inclined surface 32 b of theteeth 32 of the ratchet wheel 31, but cannot rotate in the reversedirection. Therefore, in FIG. 3, the ratchet wheel 31 is hooked on theratchet pawl 33 in a clockwise direction (in a direction of arrow B) sothat the rotation drum 20 does not rotate, but in a counterclockwisedirection (in a direction opposite arrow B) the ratchet wheel 31 is nothooked on the ratchet pawl 33 so that the rotation drum 20 rotates. Inother words, as illustrated in FIG. 3, when pushing the suction nozzleassembly 1 forward (in a direction of arrow A), the rotation drum 20rotates in the counterclockwise direction as arrow B. However, whenpulling the suction nozzle assembly 1 backward (in a direction oppositearrow A), the rotation drum 20 does not rotate.

Referring to FIGS. 4A and 4B, another ratchet part 40 as the rotationrestricting member 29 is illustrated. In FIG. 4A, a ratchet wheel 41 ofthe ratchet part 40 is similar to the ratchet wheel 31 of theabove-described ratchet part 30, but a ratchet pawl 43 is configured tomove up and down. Therefore, when the ratchet wheel 41 receives force inthe clockwise direction as arrow F illustrated in FIG. 4B, a verticalside 42 a of any of teeth 42 of the ratchet wheel 41 is hooked on theratchet pawl 43 so that the ratchet wheel 41 cannot rotate. When theratchet wheel 41 receives force in the counterclockwise direction (in adirection of arrow D) illustrated in FIG. 4A, inclined sides 42 b of theteeth 42 of the ratchet wheel 41 are not hooked on the ratchet pawl 43so that the ratchet wheel 41 can rotate.

In the above description, the ratchet parts 30 and 40 are configured sothat when the suction nozzle assembly 1 is pushed forward (refer toarrows A and C in FIGS. 3 and 4A) the rotation drum 20 rotates, and whenthe suction nozzle assembly 1 is pulled backward (refer to arrow E inFIG. 4B) the rotation drum 20 does not rotate. Alternatively, theratchet parts 30 and 40 may be configured to the contrary. In otherwords, the ratchet parts 30 and 40 may be configured so that when thesuction nozzle assembly 1 is pushed forward the rotation drum 20 doesnot rotate, and when the suction nozzle assembly 1 is pulled backwardthe rotation drum 20 rotates.

On the other hand, the rotation restricting member 29 may be configuredso that the rotation drum 20 can rotate within a predetermined angle. Inother words, the rotation drum 20 cannot continuously rotate but rotateby a predetermined angle in a first direction. Also, the rotation drum20 can rotate by a similar angle in a reverse direction of the firstdirection. Referring to FIG. 5, an example of the rotation restrictingmember 29 having the above-described structure is illustrated.

Referring FIG. 5, the rotation restricting member 29 includes a rotationwheel 45 and a stopper 46. The rotation wheel 45 is formed to rotateintegrally with the rotation drum 20 (refer to FIG. 2) coaxially withthe rotation drum 20. A plurality of grooves 45 a is formed on an outercircumferential surface of the rotation wheel 45. The stopper 46 isdisposed inside anyone of the plurality of grooves 45 a formed on theouter circumferential surface of the rotation wheel 45. The stopper 46is fixed to the housing 11 of the suction nozzle assembly 1 so that whenthe rotation drum 20 rotates, the stopper 46 does not rotate. As aresult, a rotation range of the rotation wheel 45 is restricted by thestopper 46 that positions inside one of the grooves 45 a of the rotationwheel 45. Referring to FIG. 5, the rotation wheel 45 has five grooves 45a, and the stopper 46 positions inside anyone of the five grooves 45 a.As a result, the rotation drum 30 disposed integrally with the rotationwheel 45 can rotate in the clockwise and counterclockwise directions(refer to arrow G in FIG. 5) within a predetermined angle determined bythe groove 45 a of the rotation wheel 45 and the stopper 46.

The drum body 50 and 50′ may be formed in a hexagonal column shape or ina cylindrical shape as illustrated in FIGS. 6A and 6B. The drum body 50and 50′ may be formed integrally with or detachably from the ratchetwheel 31 and 41 or the rotation wheel 45 of the rotation restrictingmember 29. In this embodiment, the ratchet wheel 31 and 41 and therotation wheel 45 are formed separately from the drum body 50 and 50′.

The removing member 60 collects thin contaminants such as hair of human,fur of animals, etc. on the surface to be cleaned in a lump, and then,guides the collected thin contaminants toward the contaminants suctionopening 14.

The removing member 60 is inserted in the drum body 50 and 50′, and isconfigured of a bottom plate 61 and a plurality of protrusions 62. Thebottom plate 61 is formed in a hexagonal column shape or a cylindricalshape corresponding to the shape of the drum body 50 and 50′. In FIGS. 7and 10, the rotation restricting members 60 and 60′ with the bottomplate 61 in the hexagonal column shape are illustrated.

The plurality of protrusions 62 contacts the surface to be cleaned,collects thin contaminants on the surface to be cleaned in a lump, andguides the collected thin contaminants in a lump toward the contaminantssuction opening 14 (refer to FIG. 2). The plurality of protrusions 62may be formed in various shapes as long as they are capable ofperforming the above-described functions.

Referring FIG. 7, the removing member 60 with the plurality ofprotrusions 62 having a substantially stick shape is illustrated. Theplurality of protrusions 62 having the stick shape may be arranged invarious patterns. In FIG. 7, the plurality of protrusions 62 is disposedin three rows on one side surface of the bottom plate 61 with thehexagonal column shape. Referring to FIG. 8, each of the protrusions 62is formed in a mountain peak with a ball. However, this is onlyexemplary embodiment and is not intended to be limiting; therefore, theprotrusions 62 with the substantially stick shape may be formed invarious shapes.

Referring to FIGS. 9A to 9F, protrusions 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, and 68 witha substantially block shape are illustrated. Here, the term “blockshape” refers to a shape of the protrusions that rise up from the bottomplate 61 in a substantially longish rectangular parallelepiped shape.The plurality of block shaped protrusions 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, and 68 maybe arranged in various patterns. Referring to FIG. 9A, the plurality ofblocks 63 is arranged to be parallel to a rotation axis (refer to CL inFIGS. 2 and 7) of the rotation drum 20. Referring to FIG. 9B, theplurality of blocks 64 is arranged in a substantially V shape, andreferring to FIG. 9C, the plurality of blocks 65 is arranged to beinclined with respect to the rotation center CL of the rotation drum 20.Referring to FIG. 9D, the plurality of blocks 66 is arranged in one rowon one side surface of the hexagonal column of the bottom plate 61. Atthis time, the plurality of blocks 66 is formed to be symmetricallyinclined with respect to a centerline 61 a of the one side surface ofthe hexagonal column of the bottom plate 61.

Referring to FIGS. 9E and 9F, the plurality of block shaped protrusions63 and 64 is arranged in a similar pattern to those of FIGS. 9A and 9B,respectively, exception that some protrusions 67 and 68 are formed in asplit block shape. Here, the term “split block shape” refers to a blockshape having split in a plurality of portions in a lengthwise directionof the block shape. In FIGS. 9E and 9F, each of the split blocks 67 and68 is split of three portions; however, this is only an exemplaryembodiment and not intended to be limiting.

Additionally, the plurality of protrusions 69 may be substantiallyformed in a loop shape as illustrated in FIG. 10. Referring to FIG. 10,the plurality of loop shaped protrusions 69 are arranged in two rows oneach of side surfaces of the bottom plate 61 of the hexagonal column.

In above-description, the removing member 60 is formed separately fromthe drum body 50. Alternatively, the removing member 60 may be formedintegrally with the drum body 50.

Furthermore, the removing member 60 may be formed of elastic materialsuch as rubber, urethane, etc. Especially, the plurality of protrusions62, 63, 64, 65, 66, 67, and 68 of the removing member may be formed offelt.

Referring to FIGS. 2 and 3, the housing 11 supports the brush 13 and therotation drum 20 to rotate, and is provided with the contaminantssuction opening 14 in fluid communication with the contaminants suctionpathway of the nozzle body 2.

Hereinafter, operation of the suction nozzle assembly 1 according to anembodiment of the present disclosure will be explained with reference toFIGS. 2 and 3.

When a user turns on the vacuum cleaner and pushes the suction nozzleassembly 1 forward, that is, pushes the brush unit 10 in the directionof arrow A in FIG. 3, the brush 13 rotates and contaminants are drawninto the suction nozzle assembly 1 from the surface to be cleaned viathe contaminants suction opening 14 by suction force.

When the suction nozzle assembly 1 moves forward, the rotation drum 20disposed in front of the brush 13 rotates in the counterclockwisedirection (refer to arrow B) due to friction against the surface to becleaned. At this time, the ratchet wheel 31 of the ratchet part 30 ofthe rotation drum 20 is not hooked on the ratchet pawl 33 so that therotation drum 20 can rotate in the counterclockwise direction. When therotation drum 20 rotates in the counterclockwise direction, thincontaminants on the surface to be cleaned are moved toward the brush 13.

However, when the user pulls the suction nozzle assembly 1 backward,that is, pulls the brush unit 10 in the reverse direction of arrow A inFIG. 3, the rotation drum 20 does not rotate. In other words, when thesuction nozzle assembly 1 moves in the reverse direction of arrow A, therotation drum 20 receives force to cause the rotation drum 20 to rotatein the clockwise direction due to friction against the surface to becleaned. However, the ratchet wheel 31 of the ratchet part 30 of therotation drum 20 is hooked on the ratchet pawl 33 so that the rotationdrum 20 cannot rotate in the clockwise direction and maintains in astationary state. When pulling the suction nozzle assembly 1 with thestopped rotation drum 20, the plurality of protrusions 63 of therotation drum 20 rubs against the surface to be cleaned to collect thincontaminants such as hair of human, fur of animals, etc. When the thincontaminants are collected in a lump by the plurality of protrusions 63,the collected thin contaminants are easily drawn into the contaminantssuction opening 14 by the suction force.

In the above description, the suction nozzle assembly 1 has the brush13; however, this is only exemplary and not intended to be limiting.Alternatively, the suction nozzle assembly 1 according to an embodimentof the present disclosure may have no brush 13.

FIG. 11 is a bottom view illustrating a suction nozzle assembly 100 forthe vacuum cleaner with no brush.

Referring to FIG. 11, the suction nozzle assembly 100 includes a nozzlebody 101, and a rotation drum 120. The nozzle body 101 is provided witha contaminants suction opening 102, and supports the rotation drum 120to rotate.

Contaminants are drawn into the contaminants suction opening 102 by thesuction force generated in the vacuum generator (not illustrated). Thecontaminants suction opening 102 may be formed so that contaminants canbe drawn in front of and behind the rotation drum 120 as illustrated inFIG. 11. In other words, the rotation drum 120 may be disposed in themiddle of the contaminants suction opening 102.

Also, although not illustrated, the contaminants suction opening 102 maybe formed only in front of the rotation drum 120. Alternatively, thecontaminants suction opening 102 may be formed only behind the rotationdrum 120.

Structure and operation of the rotation drum 120 are the same as thoseof the rotation drum 20 of the suction nozzle assembly 1 according toabove-described embodiment. Therefore, detail descriptions thereof areomitted.

FIG. 12 is a bottom view illustrating a suction nozzle assembly 200 forthe vacuum cleaner according to another embodiment of the presentdisclosure.

Referring to FIG. 12, the suction nozzle assembly 200 for the vacuumcleaner according to the embodiment of the present disclosure includes anozzle body 201, and a pair of rotation drums 221 and 222.

The nozzle body 201 is provided with a contaminants suction pathway (notillustrated) in fluid communication with a cleaner body (notillustrated) of the vacuum cleaner. A contaminants suction opening 202through which contaminants are drawn in is formed on a bottom surface ofthe nozzle body 201.

The pair of rotation drums 221 and 222 is rotatably disposed in thecontaminants suction opening 202 of the nozzle body 201. The pair of therotation drums 221 and 222 rubs against the surface to be cleaned, andcauses thin contaminants such as hair of human or/and fur of animals onthe surface to be cleaned to be collected in a lump and drawn into thecontaminants suction opening 202. Therefore, the pair of rotation drums221 and 222 may be disposed in the middle of the contaminants suctionopening 202 so that maximum suction force can be applied to between thepair of the rotation drums 221 and 222.

Each of the pair of rotation drums 221 and 222 includes a rotationrestricting member 231 and 232, a drum body, and a removing member. Therotation restricting members 231 and 232, drum body, and removing memberare similar to the rotation restricting member 29, drum body 50, andremoving member 60 of the rotation drum 20 according to theabove-described embodiment; therefore, detail descriptions thereof areomitted.

However, the rotation restricting members 231 and 232 of the suctionnozzle assembly 200 according to this embodiment are configured so thatwhen one 221 and 222 of the pair of rotation drums 221 and 222 rotates,the other rotation drum 222 and 221 is stopped. Structure of therotation restricting members 231 and 232 is illustrated in FIGS. 13A and13B.

Referring to FIGS. 12, 13A, and 13B, the first rotation restrictingmember 231 is disposed coaxially with the first rotation drum 221, thatis, the front one 221 of the pair of rotation drums 221 and 222, andallows the first rotation drum 221 to rotate in the counterclockwisedirection (refer to arrow K in FIG. 13B) but not to rotate in theclockwise direction. Also, the second rotation restricting member 232 isdisposed coaxially with the second rotation drum 222, that is, the rearone 222 of the pair of rotation drums 221 and 222, and allows the secondrotation drum 222 to rotate in the clockwise direction (refer to arrow 1in FIG. 13A) but not to rotate in the counterclockwise direction.

Therefore, if the first and second rotation restricting members 231 and232 are configured of ratchet parts as illustrated in FIGS. 13A and 13B,a first ratchet wheel 233 of the first rotation drum 221 is disposed torotate in the counterclockwise direction but not to rotate in theclockwise direction. Also, a second ratchet wheel 237 fixed coaxiallywith the second rotation drum 222 is disposed to rotate in the clockwisedirection but not to rotate in the counterclockwise direction.

Hereinafter, operation of the suction nozzle assembly 200 for the vacuumcleaner having the above-described structure will be explained withreference to FIGS. 12, 13A, and 13B.

FIG. 13B illustrates operation of the first and second rotationrestricting members 231 and 232 disposed at each of the pair of rotationdrums 221 and 222 when pushing the suction nozzle assembly 200 for thevacuum cleaner forward.

When a user pushes the suction nozzle assembly 200 forward as arrow Jillustrated in FIG. 13B, the first and second rotation drums 221 and 222tend to rotate in the counterclockwise direction due to friction forceagainst the surface to be cleaned. The first rotation restricting member231 allows the first rotation drum 221 to rotate in the counterclockwisedirection (refer to arrow K) so that when the suction nozzle assembly200 moves forward, the first rotation drum 221 rotates in thecounterclockwise direction. However, the second rotation restrictingmember 232 prevents the second rotation drum 222 from rotating in theclockwise direction so that when the suction nozzle assembly 200 movesforward, the second rotation drum 222 maintains in a stationary state.

Since when the user moves the suction nozzle assembly 200 forward asarrow J the second rotation drum 222 maintains in a stationary state,the plurality of protrusions 242 formed on the outer circumstance of thesecond rotation drum 222 rub against the surface to be cleaned tocollect thin contaminants in a lump. At this time, the first rotationdrum 221 rotates in the counterclockwise direction as arrow K, therebypushing up the contaminants to be collected in a lump by the secondrotation drum 222 inside the contaminants suction opening 202.Therefore, the suction nozzle assembly 200 can effectively draw in thincontaminants.

On the other hands, FIG. 13A illustrates operation of the first andsecond rotation restricting members 231 and 232 disposed at each of thepair of rotation drums 221 and 222 when the user pulls the suctionnozzle assembly 200 for the vacuum cleaner backward.

When the user pulls the suction nozzle assembly 200 backward as arrow H,the first and second rotation drums 221 and 222 tend to rotate in theclockwise direction (refer to arrow 1) due to the friction force againstthe surface to be cleaned. The first rotation restricting member 231prevents the first rotation drum 221 from rotating in the clockwisedirection so that when the suction nozzle assembly 200 moves backward,the first rotation drum 221 maintains in a stationary state. However,the second rotation restricting member 232 allows the second rotationdrum 222 to rotate in the clockwise direction so that when the suctionnozzle assembly 200 moves backward, the second rotation drum 222 rotatesin the clockwise direction.

Therefore, since when the user pulls the suction nozzle assembly 200backward as arrow H the first rotation drum 221 maintains in astationary state, the plurality of protrusions 241 formed on the outercircumstance of the first rotation drum 221 rub against the surface tobe cleaned to collect thin contaminants in a lump. At this time, thesecond rotation drum 222 rotates in the clockwise direction as arrow I,thereby pushing up the contaminants to be collected in a lump by thefirst rotation drum 221 inside the contaminants suction opening 202.

If the suction nozzle assembly 200 is provided with the pair of rotationdrums 221 and 222 as this embodiment, one rotation drum 221 and 222collects contaminants and the other rotation drum 222 and 221 pushes upthe collected contaminants into the contaminants suction opening 202.Therefore, the suction nozzle assembly 200 with the pair of rotationdrums 221 and 222 can more effectively draw in thin contaminants fromthe surface to be cleaned than the suction nozzle assembly 1 with onerotation drum 20 as described above.

FIG. 14 is a conceptual view schematically illustrating a suction nozzleassembly 200 having a rotation restricting member different from that ofthe suction nozzle assembly 200 of FIG. 12 with the pair of rotationdrums 221 and 222.

Referring to FIG. 14, the rotation restricting member according to thisembodiment includes first and second rotation preventing parts 251 and252 that are disposed at the nozzle body 201 (refer to FIG. 12) toprevent first and second rotation drums 261 and 262 from rotating. Eachof the first and second rotation drums 261 and 262 includes a pluralityof protrusions 261 a and 262 a that is disposed to be inclined in arotation direction of the rotation drum 261 and 262 and made of felt. Inother words, the plurality of protrusions 261 a on the first rotationdrum 261 is disposed to be inclined so that when the first rotation drum261 rotates in the counterclockwise direction, the plurality ofprotrusions 261 a is not caught by the first rotation preventing part251. Also, the plurality of protrusions 262 a on the second rotationdrum 262 is disposed to be inclined so that when the second rotationdrum 262 rotates in the clockwise direction, the plurality ofprotrusions 262 a is not caught by the second rotation preventing part252.

Therefore, as illustrated in FIG. 14, when a user pushes the suctionnozzle assembly 200 (refer to FIG. 12) forward as arrow L so that thefirst and second rotation drums 261 and 262 receive force to cause thefirst and second rotation drums 261 and 262 to rotate in thecounterclockwise direction (refer to arrow M), the plurality ofprotrusions 261 a of the first rotation drum 261 is not caught by thefirst rotation preventing part 251, so the first rotation drum 261rotates in the counterclockwise direction. However, the plurality ofprotrusions 262 a of the second rotation drum 262 is caught by thesecond rotation preventing part 252, so the second rotation drum 262does not rotate in the counterclockwise direction and maintains in astationary state.

On the other hands, when the user pulls the suction nozzle assembly 200backward so that the first and second rotation drums 261 and 262 receiveforce to cause the first and second rotation drums 261 and 262 to rotatein the clockwise direction, the plurality of protrusions 261 a of thefirst rotation drum 261 is caught by the first rotation preventing part251, so the first rotation drum 261 does not rotate in the clockwisedirection and maintains in a stationary state. However, the plurality ofprotrusions 262 a of the second rotation drum 262 is not caught by thesecond rotation preventing part 252, so the second rotation drum 262rotates in the clockwise direction.

When the first and second rotation drums 261 and 262 rotate in theinclined direction of the plurality of protrusions 261 a and 262 a, thefelt protrusions 261 a and 262 a on the outer circumferential surface ofeach of the first and second rotation drums 261 and 262 are elasticallydeformed by the first and second rotation preventing parts 251 and 252,and then restored in an original state. However, when the first andsecond rotation drums 261 and 262 rotate in a reverse direction of theinclination of the plurality of protrusions 261 a and 262 a, the firstand second rotation preventing parts 251 and 252 are caught in lowerportions of the plurality of protrusions 261 a and 262 a of the firstand second rotation drums 261 and 262 so that the first and secondrotation drums 261 and 262 cannot rotate.

As described above, a suction nozzle assembly for a vacuum cleaneraccording to an embodiment of the present disclosure has a rotation drumthat can rotate due to friction force against a surface to be cleanedwhen pushing or pulling the suction nozzle assembly, thereby effectivelydrawing in thin contaminants such as hair of human, fur of animals, etc.from the surface to be cleaned.

A suction nozzle assembly for a vacuum cleaner according to anembodiment of the present disclosure has a rotation drum that can rotatein one direction and maintain a stationary status in a reverse directionso that it can easily collect thin contaminants in a lump on a surfaceto be cleaned, and draw in the collected thin contaminants in a lump.

A suction nozzle assembly for a vacuum cleaner according to anembodiment of the present disclosure has a pair of rotation drumsconfigured so that when pushing or pulling the suction nozzle assembly,one rotation drum rotates and the other rotation drum maintains in astationary state. Therefore, the suction nozzle assembly can effectivelydraw in thin contaminants from a surface to be cleaned.

While the embodiments of the present disclosure have been described,additional variations and modifications of the embodiments may occur tothose skilled in the art once they learn of the basic inventiveconcepts. Therefore, it is intended that the appended claims shall beconstrued to include both the above embodiments and all such variationsand modifications that fall within the spirit and scope of thedisclosure.

1. A suction nozzle assembly for a vacuum cleaner, comprising: a nozzle body with a contaminants suction opening; and a rotation drum rotatably disposed at the contaminants suction opening, the rotation drum having a plurality of protrusions formed on an outer circumferential surface, wherein, when the nozzle body moves on a surface to be cleaned, the rotation drum is rotated by friction force of the plurality of protrusions against the surface to be cleaned.
 2. The suction nozzle assembly of claim 1, further comprising: a rotation restricting member to restrict rotation of the rotation drum.
 3. The suction nozzle assembly of claim 2, wherein the rotation restricting member allows the rotation drum to rotate only in one direction.
 4. The suction nozzle assembly of claim 3, wherein the rotation restricting member comprises: a ratchet wheel disposed integrally with the rotation drum; and a ratchet pawl disposed at the nozzle body to allow the ratchet wheel to rotate only in one direction.
 5. The suction nozzle assembly of claim 4, wherein the rotation restricting member allows the rotation drum to rotate when pushing the nozzle body forward.
 6. The suction nozzle assembly of claim 2, wherein the rotation restricting member allows the rotation drum to rotate in clockwise and counterclockwise directions within a predetermined angle.
 7. The suction nozzle assembly of claim 1, wherein the rotation drum comprises: a drum body; and a removing member disposed at the drum body, the removing member having the plurality of protrusions.
 8. The suction nozzle assembly of claim 7, wherein the plurality of protrusions comprise a shape selected from the group consisting of a substantially stick shape, a substantially block shape, a substantially loop shape, and any combinations thereof.
 9. The suction nozzle assembly of claim 1, further comprises: a brush rotatably disposed at one side of the rotation drum in the nozzle body.
 10. A suction nozzle assembly for a vacuum cleaner, comprising: a nozzle body with a contaminants suction opening; and a pair of rotation drums rotatably disposed at the contaminants suction opening of the nozzle body, each rotation drum of the pair of rotation drums having a plurality of protrusions formed on an outer circumferential surface, wherein, when the nozzle body moves on a surface to be cleaned, the pair of rotation drums are rotated by friction force of the plurality of protrusions against the surface to be cleaned.
 11. The suction nozzle assembly of claim 10, further comprising: a rotation restricting member to restrict each of the pair of rotation drums to rotate.
 12. The suction nozzle assembly of claim 11, wherein the rotation restricting member is configured so that, when the nozzle body moves in one direction, a first rotation drum of the pair of rotation drums rotates and a second rotation drum does not rotate, and when the nozzle body moves in a reverse direction, the first rotation drum does not rotate and the second rotation drum rotates.
 13. The suction nozzle assembly of claim 12, wherein the rotation restricting member comprises: a ratchet wheel disposed integrally with each of the pair of rotation drums; and a ratchet pawl disposed at the nozzle body to restrict rotation of the ratchet wheel.
 14. The suction nozzle assembly of claim 10, wherein each of the pair of rotation drums comprises; a drum body; and a removing member disposed at the drum body, the removing member having the plurality of protrusions.
 15. The suction nozzle assembly of claim 14, wherein the plurality of protrusions comprise a shape selected from the group consisting of a substantially stick shape, a substantially block shape, a substantially loop shape, and any combinations thereof. 